Nigeria's Economic Losses: Internet Outages and Cable Damage
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NetBlocks, using its Cost of Shutdown Tool (COST), revealed that Nigeria suffered a loss of ₦273 billion ($593.6 million) over four days due to recent internet outages. Top10VPN estimated that West and Central Africa incurred a cost of $112.5 million due to undersea cable damage, leaving users stranded.
NetBlocks employs COST to assess the financial impact of internet disruptions, drawing data from reputable sources like the World Bank and ITU. Last Thursday, Techpoint Africa reported widespread internet disruptions in African countries due to undersea cable damage, affecting mobile network operators, internet service providers, and bank transactions in Nigeria.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) confirmed repair operations on undersea cables from March 16, 2024. Meanwhile, Ghana anticipates up to five weeks for cable repairs after discussions with service providers.
Internet shutdowns globally caused a $9 billion loss in 2023, with Sub-Saharan Africa ranking second to Europe, suffering losses of $1.74 billion and impacting 84.8 million users over 30,785 hours, as reported by Top10VPN in January 2024. The situation underscores the critical need for infrastructure resilience and contingency plans to mitigate financial losses and ensure uninterrupted connectivity.
